Product Updates

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the European Union. This update includes a new assessment hub to simplify test-takers’ experience with YuJa Verity, integrated guided assistance for assessing assessments, an updated live proctoring scheduling page with a tabular view of live sessions, and more.

1. New Assessment Hub: A Minimalist Experience to the YuJa Verity LTI App for Test-Takers

   As part of our more simplified workflow for test-takers, the YuJa Verity LTI app now features a single page that displays assessments in a newly organized tabular structure. This will let them know which assessments are ready to take, which are upcoming, and which need to be scheduled.

   

2. Integrated Guided Assistance to Help Test-Takers Access Verity Assessments

   Test-takers who attempt to access a proctored assessment without authentication will have access to launch YuJa Verity on their assessment page. They will then be presented with steps to complete their authentication, which will be updated in real-time.

   

3. Updated the Live Proctoring Schedule Page with an Organized Tabular View of Live Sessions

   Previously, the live proctoring schedule page displayed all live sessions in a single view. This could sometimes be cumbersome for courses with many sessions. To provide a more simplified view, we are introducing a new tabular structure that houses sessions based on their status: Active, Upcoming, Pending, and Completed.

   

4. Revamped Setup Pages for Browser Extension, Lockdown App, and the Mobile App

   The setup pages for the Browser Extension, Desktop Lockdown App, and Mobile Lockdown App have been redesigned with clearer instructions and helpful resources. Key updates include:

   • Browser Extension Setup: Enabling Incognito mode is included as a dedicated step with a guided video to ensure compatibility for taking assessments in Incognito mode. Once the entire setup is complete, students can click the “Assessments” button to navigate directly to the assessment page.

   • Desktop Lockdown App Setup: Included links to guides explaining the minimum system requirements for running YuJa Verity and instructions to identify the appropriate Mac version to download.

   • Mobile Lockdown App Setup: Updated with modernized iconography and pre-download reminders to ensure the devices are compatible before downloading.

   

5. Redesigned Standalone Assessment Proctoring Setup with Detailed Guidance

   Building on our existing proctoring setup wizard for automated and third-party assessments, YuJa Verity now offers a similar wizard for standalone assessments with enhanced guidance. The streamlined proctoring setup wizard breaks down settings like proctoring methods and exemptions into clearly defined steps, ensuring a clearer visualization of the key information required for setup.

   

6. Delete Recordings of Proctored Sessions Based on Your Institution’s Policies

   As an administrator, you now have the option to enforce your institution’s policies regarding recorded proctoring sessions. If a recording violates your institution’s guidelines, you can easily delete the recording while retaining a detailed log of any potential misconduct identified by YuJa Verity.

   

7. Retain Proctor Settings for Assessments Copied Between Courses in Canvas and D2L Brightspace

   When you copy a proctored assessment from one course to another in Canvas or D2L Brightspace, all associated proctoring settings are also included. This feature is similar to our existing functionality in Blackboard, and future updates will provide support for Moodle.

8. Enhanced Lockdown App Compatibility with Moodle to Redirect Test-Takers to Continue with the Assessment After an Error

   In instances on the Lockdown App where test-takers cannot access their assessment due to an error, such as a poor internet connection, YuJa Verity will provide a “Continue” button once it’s resolved, allowing them to continue with their current assessment.

   

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the European Union. This update includes an improved live proctoring media player UI, more secure testing environments by flagging assessments that were closed before submission, a new option to create an exemption list for Lockdown App assessments, and more.

1. Significantly Improved the Live Proctoring Media Player UI with New Features and Activity Notifications

   We’ve redesigned the live proctoring interface to streamline your proctoring process by including the following:

   • New Sidebar Layout to View Test-Takers: We’ve introduced a sidebar view that lets you focus on individual test-takers while keeping others visible in the sidebar. You can click the Next Test-Taker button to easily rotate between test-takers.

     

   • One-Way Audio Bridge to Monitor Test-Takers: To help manually verify specific test violations, such as excessive noise in the environment, you can now set up a one-way audio connection with test-takers to listen to their surroundings.

     

   • View Flagged Events in Real Time: In addition to providing a complete live proctoring report after a session, YuJa Verity can flag issues and notify proctors in real time, such as when a test-taker turns off their camera, ensuring you can address potential misconduct immediately.

     

   • Text Chat is Now Embedded in the Collapsible Side Panel: You can now view and respond to chats directly in a collapsible side panel within the live proctoring media player. This feature replaces the previous pop-up window, which could sometimes be distracting as it covered the video feed of test-takers.

     

   • Badge Notifications for Activities: Badge notifications will now display for chats, notes, and flag events, allowing proctors to clearly notice any unread activities.

     

2. More Secure Testing Environments by Flagging Assessments That Were Closed Without Submission

   For the YuJa Verity Browser Extension, in cases where the assessment was closed without a submission, YuJa Verity can detect and flag whether the assessment was closed and whether the submission button was clicked. By detecting this issue, YuJa Verity will allow test-takers to reenter their testing environment while also ensuring that all test restrictions are still adhered to, such as having a single monitor or limiting website access.

3. The Desktop Lockdown App Now Supports Creating an Exemption List

   To enhance feature parity between the Browser Extension and Lockdown App proctoring methods, you now have the option to create an exemption list for Lockdown App assessments. This enables the exemption of specific test-takers from proctoring or allows you to apply specific proctoring methods suitable for them.

   

4. Allow Test-Takers to Join a Live Assessment Early Once the Proctor Joins the Session

   We have always provided proctors the option to join their live session 15 minutes before the assessment starts to ensure they are ready. Now, we’re offering similar capabilities to test-takers, allowing them to join before the start time of their session as long as the proctor has joined.

5. All Proctored Assessments Have Been Consolidated Onto a Single Page

   With the updated navigation menu, we’ve consolidated the proctoring tools into a single Proctored Assessment page. This centralized view lets you view all proctored assessments and their details in an organized table. To help locate assessments, you can filter them based on their type, the platform they were taken on, and the method of proctoring used.

   

6. Access YuJa Verity’s Specialized Proctoring Assessments from the More Tools Page

   The new More Tools page on YuJa Verity offers a dedicated location for specialized tools to proctor assessments. From here, you can access the options to create Practice Assessments, Third-Party Assessments, and Standalone Assessments when required.

   

7. YuJa Verity Will Keep You Authenticated for 30 Days

   If you have authenticated yourself within the last 30 days, you will not be required to authenticate each time you access your LMS to create or join an assessment. Authentication is required only if you haven’t launched the YuJa Verity LTI app in the last 30 days.

8. Integrated Third-Party Assessment Tools Can Be Easily Enabled or Disabled at the Institution Level

   As an administrator, you now have the option to disable your institution’s third-party integrations with Pearson, ALEKS, and McGraw Hill without having to remove them from YuJa Verity. If any integrations are needed in the future, you can quickly enable them again, allowing only instructors to access the active integrations. Simply go to Institution Settings > Third-Party Assessment Integrations to customize your third-party integrations.

   

9. YuJa Verity Will Auto-Detect and Sync Courses Created in Blackboard Ultra

   With the enhanced Blackboard integration, new courses in Blackboard can now be automatically detected and synced with YuJa Verity, allowing you to enable proctoring for assessments without the need for manual synchronization.

   

10. More Enhanced Recognition of Vanity URLs for Institutions and Their Associated Users

    Previously, for YuJa Verity to recognize the vanity URL of an institution, you would have had to relaunch the YuJa Verity LTI app after authentication. Now, upon the first launch of YuJa Verity, it will automatically recognize and authenticate you for the correct vanity URL of your institution.

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the European Union. This update includes integrated live proctoring sessions within the proctoring setup wizard, an updated YuJa Verity results page allowing you to switch between test-takers, a redesigned institution report and course report to provide more in-depth insights, centralized proctoring analytics in the new assessment report, and more.

1. Integration of Live Proctoring Session Within Proctoring Setup Wizard

   YuJa Verity now offers a unified workflow for live and non-live proctoring setup. Previously, as an instructor, you could only create a live assessment after setting up a proctored assessment within YuJa Verity. Now, we’ve simplified the process by integrating steps for creating a live assessment within our Setup Proctoring wizard.

   

2. New “Speed-Grader” Results Page Features Ability to Flip Through All Test-Takers in a Single View

   When reviewing proctored assessments, you can now quickly switch between a test-taker’s attempts and those of others all within the same view. Simply select a test-taker from the drop-down list and their attempts to begin reviewing recordings and relevant information, including room scans, ID photos, and configuration details. Additionally, you can also filter test-taker events by flag level, allowing you to analyze the most concerning issues.

   

3. The Institution Report Offers More In-Depth Analytics to Track YuJa Verity’s Usage

   We’ve improved our institution report to offer more key metrics that administrators can utilize to track YuJa Verity’s usage over time, along with Course Analytics showcasing an overview of YuJa Verity’s usage in particular courses. Some of the analytics include:

   • A graph illustrating the attempts associated with each proctoring method. 
   • The total number of times that test-takers have attempted assessments. 
   • The total number of assessments proctored. 
   • The total number of hours proctored.
   

4. Improved Course Report Provides New Data Representations to Assess Test-Taker Performance

   The new course report offers insights into flag levels within your course, helping you assess the frequency of severe, major, and minor events flagged in assessments. Additionally, Assessment Analytics provides an overview of each assessment, showing the total number of test-takers, the number of flagged events, and the highest flag level recorded.

   

5. Centralized Proctoring Analytics in the New Assessment Report

   The new Assessment Report offers proctoring analytics for any assessment you wish to review. It summarizes the status of completed assessments, the number of test-takers marked with Severe, Major, or Minor events, and access detailed analytics for individual test-takers.

   

6. Modernized Video Player Interface with Redesigned Progress Bar and Icons

   With the modernized video player, you can now view test-takers’ recordings with a redesigned progress bar and icons, making it easier to navigate through the content and quickly access key moments in the recordings.

7. YuJa Verity Mobile Lockdown App Support for Blackboard

   Building on our support for proctored assessments on mobile devices in D2L Brightspace and Moodle, test-takers can now take proctored assessments in Blackboard on their mobile devices.

   

8. Enhanced Guidance for Screen Sharing in the YuJa Verity Lockdown App

   We’ve added a how-to video in the YuJa Verity Lockdown app setup process to help test-takers resolve issues related to screen setup for assessments.

   

9. Resolved Session Time-Outs During Assessments in Blackboard

   Previously, test-takers experienced session time-outs when accessing assessments on Blackboard. Now, we’ve resolved this issue, and test-takers can expect questions to appear within a few seconds.

10. System Check No longer Required for Exempted Test-Takers

    Previously, exempted test-takers were required to undergo a system check before taking an assessment in the Lockdown app. Now, we’ve resolved this issue, and they can proceed to an assessment without any restriction.

    

11. Canvas Instructors Can Grade Proctored Assessments Without Requiring the YuJa Verity Browser Extension

    Canvas instructors no longer need to download the YuJa Verity Browser Extension to grade proctored assessments. They can directly click on their assessment within the YuJa Verity Platform, allowing them to grade results on a wider range of browsers and devices, including Safari and iPads.

    

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the European Union. This update includes integrated guided assistance to help new students access assessments, review live session notes, Verity Mobile Lockdown App support for D2L Brightspace and Moodle, security ID PINs, faster processing speeds for reports, auto-sync LMS sub-accounts, and more.

1. Integrated Guided Assistance to Help New Students Navigate Verity Assessments for the First Time

   Similar to our existing support for Canvas and Moodle, D2L Brightspace administrators can now implement custom Verity UI across D2L, helping students access assessments. For example, if students attempt to access an assessment without authentication, they will be automatically guided through the necessary steps to resolve the issue. Future releases will provide this feature to Blackboard. To enable this capability, please contact your Client Success Manager.

   

2. Review Live Session Notes on the Results Page

   We’ve added a dedicated Live Notes tab that consolidates all notes made by proctors during live sessions. Proctors reviewing the session can then navigate to the video’s relevant part by selecting any note.

   

3. Verity Mobile Lockdown App Support for D2L Brightspace and Moodle

   With the successful release of our Mobile Lockdown App for iOS and Android, which initially supported proctored assessments on Canvas, we have extended compatibility to allow D2L Brightspace and Moodle proctored assessments to be taken on mobile devices. Future updates will provide support to Blackboard proctored assessments.

   

4. Security ID PINs to Help Verify Account Access

   We’ve introduced unique ID pins for each account that users can relay to our support staff to confirm they have access to the account they need help on.

   

5. Test the API Access on the Institution and Course Level

   Administrators can test Verity’s LMS API access to ensure APIs can successfully create, delete, and update assessments.

   

6. Faster Processing Speeds for Report Generation

   Large institutions will notice significantly faster processing speeds when accessing their Verity reports.

   

7. Access to Assessments Will be Blocked if Test Takers Navigate to Another Page or Application

   If a test taker attempts to access another web page or application, Verity will automatically block access to the assessment, preventing third-party applications, such as capture tools, from interfering with the assessment.

   

8. New Progress Bar UI to Track the Status of ID Verification and Room Scan Uploads

   We’ve introduced a real-time progress bar to track the upload status for larger files that may take longer to upload.

   

9. Retain Proctoring Settings for Assessments Course-Copied Between Courses in Blackboard

   Blackboard instructors who copy proctored assessments between courses will now have their proctoring settings automatically applied to the assessment when it is added to a different course. This feature will be provided to other LMS in future releases.

   

10. Auto-Sync LMS Hierarchy for Sub-Accounts, Nodes, and Sub-Orgs

    In our previous update, we introduced a scope setting that allows administrators to enable Verity for specific LMS sub-accounts, sub-organizations, or nodes. With this release, Verity will now automatically detect new courses within the hierarchy every 24 hours, ensuring admins no longer need to manually update their scope settings.